This invention relates to a connector having a terminal engaging/disengaging structure in which a terminal held in a terminal housing chamber of a connector housing is engaged/disengaged with/from a flexible engagement arm.
FIG. 1 shows a connector 1 having this kind of terminal engaging/disengaging structure, which was reviewed by the present inventors. The connector 1 is provided with a flexible engagement protrusion 5 for engagement with a terminal 4 held in a terminal housing chamber 3 of a connector housing 2. The protrusion 5 is arranged opposite to the housing chamber 3 and slightly protrudes into the housing chamber 3.
Specifically, the engagement protrusion 5 is extended forwardly from a rear portion of the connector housing 2 so as to obliquely protrude into the terminal housing chamber 3. The terminal 4 has an opening (not shown) at its bottom with which the distal end of the protrusion 5 engages.
In fitting the terminal 4 into the connector 1, the terminal 4 is inserted from a terminal insertion opening (not shown) provided at the rear of the connector housing 2. During the insertion, the terminal 4 flexes the protrusion 5 protruded into the housing chamber 3 outward of the chamber 3. With the terminal 4 inserted deeper into the housing chamber 3, an engagement stage 6 of the protrusion 5 engages with the opening at the bottom of the terminal 4 so that the terminal 4 is engaged so as not to be pulled out from the housing 2.
Now the shape of the distal end portion of the engagement protrusion 5 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. The distal end portion of the protrusion 5 has two left and right sections. One section is the engagement stage 6 bulging out into the terminal housing chamber 3. The other section is a disengagement oblique guiding surface 7.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, at the distal end portion of the protrusion 5, the oblique guiding surface 7 is provided at an eccentric position with respect to the width S1 of the protrusion 5.
In order to remove the terminal 4 engaged with the protrusion 5 from the connector housing 2, a rod 8 as shown in FIG. 1 is used. The rod 8 is inserted from an insertion opening 9 formed at the front end of the connector housing 2, into the terminal housing chamber 3, and is guided on the side surface of the terminal 4 to the oblique guiding surface 7.
The rod 8 is pushed onto the guiding surface 7, and the front end of the rod 8 slides on the guiding surface 7 and bends the protrusion 5 outside the housing chamber 3. As a result, the engagement stage 6 formed at the distal end portion of the protrusion 5 is disengaged from the terminal 4, and the terminal 4 can be pulled rearward to be removed from the housing 2.
However, since the guiding surface 7 is provided only at the eccentric position with respect to the width S1 of the protrusion 5, at the distal end portion of the protrusion 5 as shown in FIG. 3, the protrusion 5 is subjected to torsion when disengaged by the rod 8, resulting in low disengagement performance.
Further, since the rod 8 contacts the terminal 4, the rod 8 is likely to damage the bottom surface of the terminal 4 or deform the terminal 4.
It is thus an object of this invention to provide a connector with improved operativity in removing a terminal, reliably preventing deformation of or damage to the terminal being removed.
According to a first aspect of this invention, there is provided a connector which comprises: a connector housing; a terminal housing chamber provided in the connector housing; a flexible engagement arm protruding into the terminal housing chamber, the engagement arm having an engaging portion which engages with an engaged portion of a terminal inserted into the terminal housing chamber from the rear thereof; and a protrusion for disengagement by a tool, provided at each side of the flexible engagement arm for disengaging the engaging portion of the flexible engagement arm from the engaged portion of the terminal.
Since the connector has the protrusion for disengagement by a tool provided on each side of the flexible engagement arm, when the engaged portion of the terminal is detached to be pulled out from the engaging portion of the engagement arm in the terminal housing chamber using a disengagement tool, the engagement arm is prevented from being torsionally dislocated, and the terminal is removed easily and reliably, resulting in improved terminal removing operation.
According to a second aspect of this invention, a connector according to the first aspect further comprises a pair of supporting arms for supporting the front end of the flexible engagement arm at a front portion of the connector housing and supporting the rear end of the flexible engagement arm at a rear portion of the connector housing, the supporting arms forming a slit sized to allow a body of the terminal to be held therein, the slit being extending from the front end of the flexible engagement arm to the engaging portion, wherein the protrusion for disengagement is provided at an outer surface of each supporting arm, protruding outward.
Since this connector has the body of the terminal held in the slit between the supporting arms of the flexible engagement arm, and has the protrusion for disengagement by a tool provided at the outer surface of each supporting arm, when the terminal is removed with the disengagement tool, the tool does not directly contact the terminal while disengaging the engaging portion of the engagement arm from the engaged portion of the terminal. Thus the terminal is prevented from being deformed or damaged by the tool when removed.